Tag: Pollyanna the Dog

Mother’s Day for the Lanchester family is an important celebration. Like Father’s Day, and everyone’s birthday, it’s more than just an excuse for Trishna (left) to take photos of her newborn niece Alejandría (“Allie Pally”). It’s a time to reconnect, fortify long-term goals, work through any lingering problems that might need attention, and celebrate the matriarchal side of the family. Let’s explore how Mother’s Days might feel in the first few years of “TheStory.”

No matter how much we mentally prepare for change, life can slip out of control instantly. “Tout passe [everything goes], tout lasse [everything tires], tout casse [everything breaks].[1]” The concept of “control” is a mental construct of our collective imagination that we dare wield to challenge The Great Unknown in a battle of normalcy over our chaotic reality. With only tangential relation, how might Trishna (center) and John (right) handle vulnerable moments in “TheStory?”

The introductory conflict of “TheStory” is how two social outcasts, John (left) and Trishna (right), want to develop their relationship yet can’t due to geographic distance. It’s not spoiling this conflict to say they do meet, since this conflict is the narrative introduction deemed “The Scene,” and it’s a convenient inference. If their natural inclination then is spending all of their time together, after spending years physically apart, would they even have separate hobbies?

The 5-person panel interview at the Department of Revenue was going ‘excellent’ and ‘alright’ simultaneously. Everyone flipped between either word for every answer. Jane was having trouble reading the expressions of the two potential teammates, hiring manager, and two customers when she heard the strangest interview question of her career: “If my team were a farm, what barnyard animal would you be, and why?” She’d brushed up on any applicable modern technology, but nothing agricultural.

We can decide whether our weaknesses will cause us to become weak. While most weaknesses can become excuses that can potentially control us, there are exceptions that should be respected. My intentions are pure, so let’s not focus on any possible hypotheticals for this week’s update to “TheStory.” Instead, let’s focus on two casual examples of when main characters John (off-center) and Trishna (center) decide to not let their physical weaknesses make them weak.

What captivates us about stories of heroes and villains? Do we enjoy seeing competent players battle, with the winner usually being one closely matching our morals and ideals? How much influence do we allow these fictional and realistic heroes to play in our lives? In “TheStory,” does Rogue influence Trishna (left)? Does Deadpool influence John (right)? Would they even appear, in passing, as copyright-obscured characters? Or would their world value different sorts of heroes?

Fiction fascinates me most when characters face impossible odds and sometimes overcome them. Heroes vanquishing villains, people confronting their demons, or even overcoming common problems. The more we relate and invest in these characters, the harder it is to see them battered around. I’ve cared about John and Trishna [center] for over 15 years now. How far will I break them when I write “TheStory?” Will I need to break myself in the process?

Adaptation is a central theme to “TheStory” Trishna’s service dog Pollyanna (background, right) grew up with acres of farmland to explore. When Trishna (foreground, left) leaves for college with John (foreground, right), her family have to figure out what’s best for the now-senior Pollyanna. Does Pollyanna retire from service duties, stay on the farm, and visit on weekends? Does she stay in their dorm apartment during the day? Do they invite her to class?

How often do you meet new people? Not just regurgitating scripts during transactional interactions with humans, either, how often do you allow yourself open up so that new people can meet you? That does require the vulnerability of letting your guard down, inviting people to see your ego’s grit, and possibly getting hurt. “TheStory” will focus on many people and encounters, centering around Trishna (left) and John (right), almost as guides through their world.

The ideal world would not have any villains. We’d go about our peaceful days without conflict. This “drama-free” world would not be functional, however, because by our very natures we have different interests and therefore investments. I’d rather wake up early to write broadly about how John and Trishna (right), main characters of “TheStory” might overcome adversity, here shown as Dr. Mindbender (left). You might prefer clicking on the link/image below to continue reading.